A world forum of civil society organizations is urging President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to push for greater state responsibility to ensure people’s welfare, especially in developing countries.

Discussions on a global post- Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) still “lean to a market-based development approach, which means the expansion of the market that minimizes the responsibility of the state,” Sugeng Bahagijo of the international NGO the Indonesian Development Forum (INFID), said on Monday in Nusa Dua, Bali.

“The trend is for each country to recognize voluntary action in implementing the global development framework [which] is not binding and would be detrimental to the people. The responsibility of states must be laid out clearly through a binding universal mechanism,” Sugeng added.

A 24-member advisory panel will meet on Tuesday after discussions on Monday between scholars, representatives of the public sector, civil society organizations and youth organziations.

On Wednesday two of the three cochairs of the Bali High Level Panel, Yudhoyono and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, will conclude the talks, while cochair UK Prime Minister David Cameron will participate by video conference.

Journalists, academics, rights activists and civil society representatives on Tuesday urged the government not to curb citizens’ freedom of expression by controlling internet use.

They made the call at a dialogue on ‘Challenges and opportunities of freedom of expression online in Bangladesh’ and the launch of a report ‘Bangladesh: an assessment of freedom expression online’ at a local hotel in the capital.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression programme launched the report.

The speakers observed that there was no need to formulate an online policy, saying that the Shahbagh movement itself was the result of blogging or online activities.

Referring to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the speakers at the programme emphasised the need to ensure right to freedom of expression online and pluralism in society.

The event was organised by VOICE, in association with Bangladesh Manabadhikar Sangbadik Forum, Campaign on Citizen Right to Information, Equity and Justice Working Group, Online Knowledge Society, Sushashaner Jonno Pracharavijan, School of Communications and Cultural Metaphysics.

Justice (Retd) Golam Rabbani on Saturday urged the government to form a national tribunal to protect citizens’ right to privacy. “The tribunal should operate in every district in Bangladesh and collect anecdotal evidence from ordinary people, so as to form an effective policy to protect their rights to privacy,” he said during a ‘National convention on right to privacy and data protection.’

It was held at CIRDAP auditorium in the capital and organised by the non-governmental organization Voice, in association with Bangladesh ICT Journalist’s Forum, Campaign for Citizen’s Right to Information, Campaign for Good Governance, Privacy International, Media watch, Equitybd and somewhere in.blog

Justice Rabbani said the Right to Information Act 2009 emphasises that information that may endanger public security or impede the judicial process should not be disclosed.“The problem is that many people remain unaware of the RTI Act. Everyone should become familiar with the concepts of privacy and disclosure,” he said.

Sayed Marghub Morshed, former chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) said that protecting individual’s personal information has become more crucial than ever before.

Civil society groups Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA), Campaign for Sustainable Rural LIvelihood (CSRL), EquityBD, Network on Climate Change, Bangladesh (NCCB), Campaign For Good Governance (SUPRO) and Voices for Interactive Choice & Empowerment (VOICE) organized a seminar "Climate Induced Migrants : A Political and Development Agenda" at the national press club on 1st November 2011. The leader of the Official Bangladesh Delegation to UNFCCC State Minister for the Ministry of Environment and Forest Dr. Hasan Mahmud, Members of Parliament and civil society groups attended the meeting. The press release and media coverage are put below:

The judges also issued a rule asking five senior government officials to explain within two weeks why they should not be directed to make a policy over the sue of CCTV cameras in service rooms of female saloons.

The respondents included the information secretary, home secretary, labour secretary, inspector general of police and the director general of Rapid Action Battalion.

The petition says after the Persona incident most of the people irrespective of female and male used to take parlour services are in fear that they might have been captured by CCTV cameras and their footage was used for an illegal motive.

Bangladesh security agencies need to be under scrutiny of the parliament, as they are blamed for infringement of privacy by tapping phones and hacking emails.

Former senior bureaucrat Margub Murshed made the statement Sunday, saying that during his time as head of the telecom regulatory body, he turned down an offer by security agencies to wire tapping private individuals without proper authorization.

His statement was backed up by others attending a discussion Sunday organized by rights organization VOICE in the capital.

Akhteruzzaman Manju, the head of an Internet service provider association, disclosed that they are forced to provide details of email traffic to the telecom authority commission every three months in violation of privacy rights.

Speakers at meeting on Saturday demanded protection ofprivacy rights of the citizens while using internet, cell phone and other IT media for various purposes.

They also demanded maintaining privacy of personal datawhile providing to the government and non-government organizations.

Voice for Interactive Choice and Empowerment (VOICE), anon-government organization, held an exchange of views meeting at the JatiyaPress Club with its executive director Ahmed Swapan Mahmud in the chair.Pointing to Article 43 of the Constitution on protection of home andcorrespondence, they said every citizen shall have the right to be secured inhis home against entry, search and seizure.

The citizens shall also have the privacy to hiscorrespondence and other means of communication, they added.

Rights activists urged the government to initiate district budget in the national budget for the next financial year for the development of rural areas as well as achieving the Vision 2021 as envisaged.

They said that the present budget preparation as colonial top down process and there is no alternative to achieve Vision 2021without district budget.

They were speaking at a rally organised by 14 rights based civil society organisations led by EquityBD in front of the National Press Club on Saturday. The organisations include Arpon, Ahish, Online Knowledge Centre, EquityBD, Eso, SDO, MABS, Lead Trust, Prodip, BNNRC, Voice, Bangladesh Bhumihin Samity, Bangladesh Krihsok Federation and Sirak Bangladesh.

SM Saikat of Sirak Bangladesh said people have no participation in preparing the budget. Nor the people from district level have the means to monitor implementation of the budget. Absence of people’s participation in the process and implementation of the budget has given the rise of pervasive corruption.

Feroze Ahmed of Lead Trust said the top down process is basically responsible for growing trend of widening the gap of regional disparity.

A non-government organisation has demanded formation of independent 'Privacy Commission' in a bid to establish the rights of secrecy and protect personal information, reports bdnews24.com.

'Voice,' a development research organisation, made the demand at a press conference on Friday on the eve of International Privacy Day.

The organisation also urged the government to amend the Telecommunications Act-2006 to protect the rights to personal privacy.

Different European countries, along with the USA, have been observing Jan 28 as 'Data Privacy Day' since 2008. Several Asian countries have started observing the day this year.The executive director of 'Voice,' Ahmed Swapan Mahmud, said that the road to economic advancement and the communications of the people were extended due to the Right to Information Act and the development of information technology, 'but personal privacy rights were being violated through it.'

As per the Telecommunications Act, Mahmud said, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), police and Detective Branch (DB) can eavesdrop anyone's phone call for the security of the country, "but one has to take permission from the authorities to protect personal information, if there is a Privacy Commission."